The average person’s thumb travels the equivalent of two marathons a year, scrolling through social media. The average person; not just teens or twenty-somethings! What would the ancient writer of Ecclesiastes have said of the amount of time we spend on TikTok, X, YouTube, and Instagram? He had everything he desired—pleasure, possessions, passion, and palaces—and denied himself nothing. Any millennial influencer would drool in envy. Yet, as he considered all he had acquired and achieved under the sun, he lamented that it failed to provide meaning (Ecclesiastes 1:2-3). Pointless. Unfulfilling. A chasing of the wind. How much more so the endless scrolling we do on our phones?
So what is it that keeps us coming back? Why are we so drawn to online content? To “social” media? How can we be more wise and discerning?
Pointless. Unfulfilling. Chasing the wind. How much more so the endless scrolling we do on our phones?
Social media isn’t so much designed to engage us as it is to retain us. The deeper we go and more time we spend the greater their revenue. Their algorithms are fine-tuned to identify what we like while also taking into consideration what or who we follow—information we freely share—to hold our attention. Social media platforms typically want a single thing: to make us scroll through one more image, meme, or video. Then another. And the next one.
What Are You Filling Your Eyes and Heart With?
The Internet and social media are, of course, neither good or evil. They’re neutral. They can be beneficial and enabling when used wisely. We can maintain contact with distant friends and family. And we can keep up to date with happenings in the industry we work in. Furthermore, with feeds, we can follow favourite blogs, hobbies, and sports teams. You may have come upon this article via Facebook or Instagram.
Online information is increasingly hyper-palatable, akin to appealing junk food.
But the subtle temptation is to enter the social media maze and get sucked into a time-wasting vortex of distractions. In his 12 Ways Your Phone Is Changing You, Tony Reinke notes that online information is increasingly hyper-palatable, akin to appealing junk food. He explains two challenges in the digital age:
- Mental pollution due to information overload
- The nutritional deficiency of much online content.
We are quickly captured by the trivial, which limits time for deep thinking about ultimate and eternal questions. Many of us are addicted to our devices. We check them multiple times an hour—even if we don’t receive a notification. While Bible apps, devotional emails, and prayer reminders are helpful, our minds can quickly be drawn away from timeless truths by an alert or something eye-catching.
Stop Searching Social Media for Meaning
Finding meaning and balance amidst our social media streams is a microcosm of the metanarrative that is playing out. How and where will we find purpose and belonging amidst all the trappings of this world that jostle for our time and attention? Meaning is not ultimately found in the latest mobile device, electric car, AI chatbot, or virtual home assistant. As Reinke puts it, “when it comes to searching out the meaning of our existence in this world, all of our technology cannot take us deep enough or high enough.”
Meaning is found in knowing and loving our Creator.
We matter because we are not cosmic accidents. Our thoughts, words, and actions will echo, for better or worse, in eternity. Meaning is found in knowing and loving our Creator. And living out our lives in companionable service and friendship to others. There is a risk that the constant stream of content diverts us from spending deep, uninterrupted time with God—and one another. We need time for introspection. Our eyes and ears are the windows of our hearts and minds.
Navigating This “Always-On” Culture
How should we, as followers of Jesus, live in this “always-on” culture? Trusting and obeying Jesus is the only quest that can fill the God-shaped vacuum in our hearts. We will be tempted to test every path in the labyrinth of life, both in-person and online. Limited social media for beneficial purposes, even relaxation or entertainment, can be helpful for some. But it would be wise to set boundaries. For others, this may mean removing themselves from certain online platforms. Are you increasingly choosing to fill your time with what is honourable, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8)?
Are you increasingly filling your time with what is honourable, pure, commendable, and praiseworthy?
Our search for meaning and fulfilment finds its ‘yes’ and ‘amen’ in Jesus (2 Corinthians 1:20). Knowing, loving, and serving the Lord is the glorious goal in life. The ancient sage concluded this in his search for a purpose beyond himself (Ecclesiastes 12:13b-14). When you are drawn to time-wasting and distracting online content, you will do well to model your prayer on Moses’ words (Psalm 90:12): Lord, please teach me to number my days, hours, minutes, and seconds, that I may get a heart of wisdom.
Or we could pray the words of the ageless hymn:
‘Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days; let them flow in endless praise.
Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of thy love.’
